Is it acceptable to cancel a meeting if unwell but well enough to work?

[SpeedbirdSquawker]

I'm not really well enough to work but I have so much to do.

I have an external meeting tomorrow where I'm presenting for ten minutes. I could excuse myself from the meeting but is that really shitty? I know it's only ten minutes but I'm really not on top form.

Nah I’ve done it, because I couldn’t stop coughing. I didn’t publicise the fact that I did it though, as it was an external one and only me from my organisation going. I just rearranged it. If you can do that then do.

You are either well enough to be at work or your not

Acceptable to whom? I mean, it will be more than acceptable to some people, and there will be twats who think otherwise.

More to the point - how important is it that (a) the presentation happens (b) that it happens tomorrow and (c) that it's you who does it?

Personally, I wouldn't be forcing myself to do something badly; and I'd be fucked off if someone in my team chose to go ahead while clearly being too unwell to do it. So I would either rearrange or delegate, or come up with an alternative like sending a pack & answering questions later.

I've done this and have had meetings cancelled where the organiser has been unwell and asked to rearrange, I don't think anything of it.

There's nothing worse than listening to someone coughing through a presentation or barely hanging on to their voice

If I really wasn't up to drugging myself up and white knuckling through the 10mins of presentation, then yeah I'd move it, it happens. I've certainly had days when I've felt capable of quietly WFH but not of putting a face on and performing for people I needed to impress.

No, it will look as though you can't be arsed to go in to work, but don't mind doing the presentation.
Would it even be allowed? Once I was off sick at school but had parents' meetings in the afternoon and offered to go in for those and was told absolutely not permitted.

I had to do this recently. I had laryngitis and lost my voice so couldn't take any meetings.

I was fine to work as I wasn't ill per se. I just had no voice. Sat in my usual meetings without contributing (which is fine as I wasn't taking these meetings and didn’t need to contribute)

Rescheduled what I missed and everyone was very understanding.

The OP seems to be asking the opposite? If it's okay to miss the meeting but still work?

Isn't that just laziness?

I have done.

Huge difference between sitting doing admin while feeling like crap, to interacting with others and presenting professionally.

If I feel unwell I tell me boss I’m not up to meetings but will crack on with my other work. I tell those who work under me to do the same unless they need to be off and resting.

Oh d'oh.
Ignore me @SpeedbirdSquawker (and get better soon!)

Depends entirely on the job, some jobs you can do “lighter duties” when unwell others it is not possible.

I've done this and had it done to me lots of times. It's no biggie at all,

If it's impossible for someone else to present, it could look bad on your firm in the eyes of the client. If it's not that big of a deal and someone else can do it then just cancel. If it's not client facing I'd say it's less important.

I don't think I'd be impressed, it looks like you're just trying to avoid the meeting if you're well enough to work. If you're genuinely ill then take the whole day off.

We have a small window of ability where people work from home because they are basically fit to work but not fit to commute, recently used by someone with a broken hand who couldn’t drive and someone who had been sent home ill during the day but still managed a couple of hours later that day from home.

What would you do as a team if you lost your voice? Could you go and answer questions (on paper) but get a colleague to do the bulk of the talking?

Do you have specific symptoms like losing your voice or a hacking cough that will actively prevent you presenting or do you just feel awful?

Thank you all for your replies. Its quite an informal meeting. One that is repeated monthly so I can present at the next meeting. The commute to work isn't long but the commute to this meeting is long and my physical symptoms makes it hard to commute for long. I'm still feeling unwell now hence being wide awake at 2.30am.